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Current NHL Forwards Tier List

Created by: WN88
Team: 2023-24 Custom Team
Initial Creation Date: Jul. 18, 2023
Published: Jul. 18, 2023
Salary Cap Mode: Basic
Description
Tier 1 (Left Wing) - McDavid
Tier 2 (Center) - Generational Talent (Top 4 player in league)
Tier 3 (Right Wing) - Franchise Players (Top 5-15 forward in league)
Tier 4 (Left D) - All-Star (Top 16-25 forward in league)
Tier 5 (Right D) - Borderline All-Star (Top 26-50 forward in league)

*Players in tiers are listed in no particular order
*General assessment of how good I think every player is
*Let me know what ya think... don't be afraid to be critical, I enjoy player discussion.
ROSTER SIZESALARY CAPCAP HITOVERAGES TooltipBONUSESCAP SPACE
55$83,500,000$465,332,294$0$0-$381,832,294
Left WingCentreRight Wing
Tier 1, McDavid
$10,000,000$10,000,000
Tier 2, Generational
$10,000,000$10,000,000
Tier 3, Franchise
$10,000,000$10,000,000
Logo of the Edmonton Oilers
$12,500,000$12,500,000
C
NMC
UFA - 3
Logo of the Toronto Maple Leafs
$11,640,250$11,640,250
C
NMC
UFA - 1
Logo of the Florida Panthers
$9,500,000$9,500,000
RW
NMC
UFA - 7
Logo of the Colorado Avalanche
$12,600,000$12,600,000
C
NMC
UFA - 8
Logo of the Boston Bruins
$11,250,000$11,250,000
RW
NMC
UFA - 8
Logo of the Edmonton Oilers
$8,500,000$8,500,000
C, LW
M-NTC, NMC
UFA - 2
Logo of the Vancouver Canucks
$7,350,000$7,350,000
C, LW
UFA - 1
Logo of the Minnesota Wild
$9,000,000$9,000,000
LW
UFA - 3
Logo of the Colorado Avalanche
$9,250,000$9,250,000
RW, C
M-NTC
UFA - 2
Logo of the Tampa Bay Lightning
$9,500,000$9,500,000
C, RW
NMC
UFA - 7
Logo of the New Jersey Devils
$8,000,000$8,000,000
C
UFA - 7
Logo of the Pittsburgh Penguins
$8,700,000$8,700,000
C
NMC
UFA - 2
Logo of the Toronto Maple Leafs
$10,903,000$10,903,000
RW
NMC
UFA - 2
Logo of the Tampa Bay Lightning
$9,500,000$9,500,000
RW
NMC
UFA - 4
Logo of the Vegas Golden Knights
$10,000,000$10,000,000
C
NMC
UFA - 3
Left DefenseRight DefenseGoaltender
Tier 4, All-Star
$10,000,000$10,000,000
Tier 5, Borderline All-Star
$10,000,000$10,000,000
Logo of the Dallas Stars
$8,450,000$8,450,000
C
UFA - 8
Logo of the San Jose Sharks
$6,750,000$6,750,000
C
NMC
UFA - 7
Logo of the Dallas Stars
$7,750,000$7,750,000
LW, RW
RFA - 3
Logo of the Arizona Coyotes
$7,150,000$7,150,000
LW, RW
UFA - 5
Logo of the Ottawa Senators
$8,350,000$8,350,000
C
UFA - 8
Logo of the Los Angeles Kings
$7,875,000$7,875,000
RW, LW
NMC
UFA - 6
Logo of the Carolina Hurricanes
$8,460,250$8,460,250
C
UFA - 1
Logo of the St. Louis Blues
$8,125,000$8,125,000
RW
UFA - 8
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$7,142,857$7,142,857
C
UFA - 7
Logo of the Pittsburgh Penguins
$6,100,000$6,100,000
C
NMC
UFA - 3
Logo of the Florida Panthers
$10,000,000$10,000,000
C
NMC
UFA - 7
Logo of the Los Angeles Kings
$8,500,000$8,500,000
C
UFA - 8
Logo of the Boston Bruins
$6,125,000$6,125,000
LW
M-NTC
UFA - 2
Logo of the Minnesota Wild
$7,000,000$7,000,000
RW, LW
UFA - 7
Logo of the Vegas Golden Knights
$9,500,000$9,500,000
RW
NMC
UFA - 4
Logo of the Nashville Predators
$8,500,000$8,500,000
LW
NMC
UFA - 7
Logo of the New Jersey Devils
$8,800,000$8,800,000
LW, RW
UFA - 8
Logo of the Ottawa Senators
$8,205,714$8,205,714
LW
UFA - 5
Logo of the Toronto Maple Leafs
$6,962,366$6,962,366
RW
NMC
UFA - 1
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$7,100,000$7,100,000
C, LW
UFA - 7
Logo of the Pittsburgh Penguins
$4,500,000$4,500,000
LW, RW
M-NTC
UFA - 1
Logo of the New York Islanders
$8,500,000$8,500,000
C
NTC
UFA - 8
Logo of the Detroit Red Wings
$8,700,000$8,700,000
C
NTC
UFA - 8
Logo of the Carolina Hurricanes
$7,750,000$7,750,000
LW, RW
UFA - 6
Logo of the New Jersey Devils
$7,250,000$7,250,000
C
UFA - 4
Logo of the Winnipeg Jets
$7,142,857$7,142,857
LW
UFA - 3
Logo of the New York Islanders
$9,150,000$9,150,000
C, RW
UFA - 8
Logo of the Tampa Bay Lightning
$8,500,000$8,500,000
LW, C
NMC
UFA - 1
Logo of the Colorado Avalanche
$6,125,000$6,125,000
RW, LW
NMC
UFA - 7
Logo of the Columbus Blue Jackets
$9,750,000$9,750,000
LW
NMC
UFA - 6
Logo of the Detroit Red Wings
$7,875,000$7,875,000
LW, RW
UFA - 4
Logo of the New York Rangers
$8,500,000$8,500,000
C
NMC
UFA - 7
Logo of the St. Louis Blues
$5,800,000$5,800,000
LW, RW, C
M-NTC
UFA - 2
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$4,750,000$4,750,000
RW, LW
M-NTC
UFA - 3
Logo of the Winnipeg Jets
$6,000,000$6,000,000
RW, LW
M-NTC
UFA - 2

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Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:15 p.m.
#1
Always have 2018
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Ovechkin isn’t a top 50 forward?
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Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:15 p.m.
#2
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Jt Miller stays underrated
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Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:16 p.m.
#3
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Quoting: perrystreett
Ovechkin isn’t a top 50 forward?


Knew I was forgetting someone. I'd probably only put him in tier 5, though.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:17 p.m.
#4
Always have 2018
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Quoting: WN88
Knew I was forgetting someone. I'd probably only put him in tier 5, though.


Fair, I’d have him in 4 but I’m biased
Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:18 p.m.
#5
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Quoting: canucksfan43
Jt Miller stays underrated


He just barely missed the list. Tier 5 is honestly much bigger than what I put, but I just didn't want to go more than 50 players.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:34 p.m.
#6
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Quoting: WN88
He just barely missed the list. Tier 5 is honestly much bigger than what I put, but I just didn't want to go more than 50 players.


He's definitely better then Horvat at the very least though
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Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:40 p.m.
#7
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Quoting: Warpbox
He's definitely better then Horvat at the very least though


You're probably right. Def a bit of recency bias on my part.
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Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:48 p.m.
#8
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Is Panarin missing or am I blind
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Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:51 p.m.
#9
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Nugent-Hopkins.

I'd probably put Draisaitl up one level. He's the only guy in McDavid's zip code.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 12:59 p.m.
#10
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Quoting: Rags21
Is Panarin missing or am I blind


He'd probably belong to the tier 5. As I stated above, that tier is probably a lot bigger than what I had. Having said that, not the biggest Panarin fan.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 1:02 p.m.
#11
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Quoting: CD282
Nugent-Hopkins.

I'd probably put Draisaitl up one level. He's the only guy in McDavid's zip code.


Nah. McDavid is still in a tier of his own. It's nearly impossible to dethrone him of being the best player in the league. That's why he's in his own tier. However, there's definitely valid arguments for Matthews or Mack being better than Drai. IMO those 3 guys fluctuate year-to-year. That is why they are in the same tier.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 1:05 p.m.
#12
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Quoting: WN88
He'd probably belong to the tier 5. As I stated above, that tier is probably a lot bigger than what I had. Having said that, not the biggest Panarin fan.


I mean he’s better than all those tier 5 guys. On top of being top 5 in points over the past 5 years lol he’s consistently good
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Jul. 18, 2023 at 1:11 p.m.
#13
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Quoting: Rags21
I mean he’s better than all those tier 5 guys. On top of being top 5 in points over the past 5 years lol he’s consistently good


He'd be higher-end tier 5. I'm just not a fan of his two-way game. Idk there's just something missing there for me. Although he puts up points, it never really feels like he takes over a game at 5-on-5. Last year I would have had him in tier 3, but my opinion on him has changed after watching him play more. Hopefully he'll improve under the new coach.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 1:40 p.m.
#14
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Quoting: WN88
Knew I was forgetting someone. I'd probably only put him in tier 5, though.


I'm definitely a little biased, but Ovi still belongs in tier 3. Goal scoring alone puts him there. However, he still hits hard, he's a leader and defenses STILL have to gameplan specifically for him. Also, at his age, he is better defensively than he was in his 20s.

Side note - If Crosby is still in tier 3, Ovi is too. They are tied at the hip for eternity. Lol
Jul. 18, 2023 at 1:54 p.m.
#15
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Quoting: HughMann413
I'm definitely a little biased, but Ovi still belongs in tier 3. Goal scoring alone puts him there. However, he still hits hard, he's a leader and defenses STILL have to gameplan specifically for him. Also, at his age, he is better defensively than he was in his 20s.

Side note - If Crosby is still in tier 3, Ovi is too. They are tied at the hip for eternity. Lol


Ovi is still a good goal scorer, but saying he's better defensively now than he was in his 20s holds very little weight considering he was never a good defensive player and he still isn't. Crosby is tier 3 because he's still one of the best players in hockey. Ovi isn't. And if you think he should belong in tier 3 from goal scoring alone, then there's so many other players that should be in tier 3. Being a 40 goal scorer doesn't have the same meaning now as it did even 5 years ago, especially when you don't really contribute in any other area at an elite level.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 2:22 p.m.
#16
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Quoting: WN88
However, there's definitely valid arguments for Matthews or Mack being better than Drai. IMO those 3 guys fluctuate year-to-year. That is why they are in the same tier.

Offensively Draisaitl is head and shoulders above those guys, having scored more points than either of them in each of the past FIVE seasons.

Here is the scoring totals over that span:

1. McDavid: 216-378-594
2. Draisaitl: 231-306-537
3. MacKinnon: 170-286-456
4. Panarin: 128-300-428
5. Marner: 127-297-424
6. Pastrnak: 207-207-414
7. Matthews: 225-185-410

So Draisaitl was 57 points behind McDavid but 81 points ahead of MacKinnon and 127 points ahead of Matthews. You could argue MacKinnon belongs in Draisaitl's strata even though Draisaitl is closer to McDavid, but putting Matthews there is a stretch.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 2:43 p.m.
#17
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Quoting: CD282
Offensively Draisaitl is head and shoulders above those guys, having scored more points than either of them in each of the past FIVE seasons.

Here is the scoring totals over that span:

1. McDavid: 216-378-594
2. Draisaitl: 231-306-537
3. MacKinnon: 170-286-456
4. Panarin: 128-300-428
5. Marner: 127-297-424
6. Pastrnak: 207-207-414
7. Matthews: 225-185-410

So Draisaitl was 57 points behind McDavid but 81 points ahead of MacKinnon and 127 points ahead of Matthews. You could argue MacKinnon belongs in Draisaitl's strata even though Draisaitl is closer to McDavid, but putting Matthews there is a stretch.


I don't understand why points are the only thing here that determines how good a player is. Like, even if it was, you could at least put more effort into it by digging into p/gp or how many of those points (by %) came from 5-on-5 (the most important) or 5-on-4.

Maybe you don't care about defensive play, but I do, and both Mack and Matthews have shown to be good-to-great two-way forwards whereas Drai's underlying numbers and eye test would indicate that he has zero intention of ever improving his catastrophic defensive play.

Also, not that it matters, but it's certainly not a coincidence that the one player of those three that PLAYS with McDavid is closest to him in scoring. lol.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 3:16 p.m.
#18
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Quoting: WN88
I don't understand why points are the only thing here that determines how good a player is. Like, even if it was, you could at least put more effort into it by digging into p/gp or how many of those points (by %) came from 5-on-5 (the most important) or 5-on-4.

Maybe you don't care about defensive play, but I do, and both Mack and Matthews have shown to be good-to-great two-way forwards whereas Drai's underlying numbers and eye test would indicate that he has zero intention of ever improving his catastrophic defensive play.

Also, not that it matters, but it's certainly not a coincidence that the one player of those three that PLAYS with McDavid is closest to him in scoring. lol.

McDavid plays with other guys more, and they aren't close to him in scoring. Matthews plays almost entirely with Marner, MacKinnon with Rantanen and Makar. Draisaitl and McDavid are normally on different lines. You have to apply the same standards to the others if you want to be fair.

Defensive play is really hard to pick out of the numbers. There are 5 guys on the ice at a time, you would have to analyze each play to ascertain who did what right and what wrong. You can infer generalizations from on-ice numbers, but who you play with makes a big difference. Draisaitl hasn't had the luxury of playing with guys like Marner and Landeskog, both of whom are known for their defensive abilities.

When measuring defensive play, how much weight do you give to the penalty kill?

Also, 5v5 points aren't more important than 5v4 points, that's a common misconception. I use 5v5 points all the time for comparative purposes, but when all three players are getting equal treatment (1st unit PP time) there's no reason to weight 5v5 as more important. All goals count equally.
Jul. 18, 2023 at 3:41 p.m.
#19
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Quoting: CD282
McDavid plays with other guys more, and they aren't close to him in scoring. Matthews plays almost entirely with Marner, MacKinnon with Rantanen and Makar. Draisaitl and McDavid are normally on different lines. You have to apply the same standards to the others if you want to be fair.

Defensive play is really hard to pick out of the numbers. There are 5 guys on the ice at a time, you would have to analyze each play to ascertain who did what right and what wrong. You can infer generalizations from on-ice numbers, but who you play with makes a big difference. Draisaitl hasn't had the luxury of playing with guys like Marner and Landeskog, both of whom are known for their defensive abilities.

When measuring defensive play, how much weight do you give to the penalty kill?

Also, 5v5 points aren't more important than 5v4 points, that's a common misconception. I use 5v5 points all the time for comparative purposes, but when all three players are getting equal treatment (1st unit PP time) there's no reason to weight 5v5 as more important. All goals count equally.


5v5 scoring is more important because a) it’s harder and b) it’s where 90% of the game is played. McDavid and Draisaitl’s 5v5 production was often the biggest question mark of that Oilers team, and it ended up being the main reason they lost to Vegas.

I value the penalty kill if you’re good at the penalty kill. There’s always a misconception that if a player plays those minutes they must be good at defending. That just isn’t true.

Defensive play used to be difficult to evaluate, but through the evolution of analytics, it’s a lot easier to see who prevents scoring chances out there (isolated from teammate play). If you want to disregard that aspect of the game completely because you don’t know how to evaluate it, then fine.

Regardless, I still think Drai is in the same tier as those other guys. There isn’t a day on Earth where he’s ever been better than Mcdavid, but there are days, months, and years where he isn’t as good as Mackinnon or Matthews. It personally comes down to Drai’s power play production. I at one point didn’t think it mattered. But after the Vegas series, it’s clear that 5on4 scoring should be held with an asterisk.
Jul. 19, 2023 at 9:57 p.m.
#20
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Edited Jul. 20, 2023 at 7:05 a.m.
Quoting: WN88
It personally comes down to Drai’s power play production. I at one point didn’t think it mattered. But after the Vegas series, it’s clear that 5on4 scoring should be held with an asterisk.


What exactly do you mean by that? Edmonton's PP was successful against Vegas. Their PP had little to do with them losing the series.
 
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